Blog

“When my husband and I were in our 20s, we didn’t have what anyone would consider an ‘estate.’ We lived paycheck to paycheck and had a mortgage on a small house. We did, however, have two priceless assets that provided good reasons for us to make a will—our children.”

No one likes to consider the prospect of tragedy striking, especially when children are young, but according to this article in the Lodi News Sentinel, “Planning for what comes last,”{: target="_blank"} estate planning is especially important for families just starting out. When the children grow up, estate planning is important to protect the children, making...

“Aretha Franklin's death is going to cause some headaches for her heirs.”

The Queen of Soul did not have an estate plan, a will or a trust when she died from pancreatic cancer recently, according to news reports. That’s especially surprising, said Investment News in the article “Aretha Franklin estate echoes planning problems of Prince,”{: target="_blank"} since her estate has already been valued at as much as $80 million.

Franklin was not married, so the estate will pass to her four children. It’s similar to the situation that occurred when Prince died unmarried and without a will in 2016.

Had she been married her estate would...

“Choosing an assisted living facility can be frightening prospect for anyone. However, the fear can be greater for people with no kids to help them through the process.”

When you don’t have kids or close family members, making decisions about an assisted living facility can be lonely and daunting, often leading people to delay planning. For many people, says Financial Planning in a recent article “Planning challenge: aging clients, no kids, assisted living required,”{: target="_blank"} just the thought of moving into an assisted living facility, means they are entering a dark tunnel or, as some say, heading into God’s waiting ro...

“Four types of expenses can wreak havoc with your retirement.”

Retirement is a balance between enjoying your golden years, taking good care of your health and balancing your finances, so you don’t run out of income too early. However, as reported by MD Magazine in the recent article “Four Big Retirement Threats and How to Protect Yourself,”{: target="_blank"} there are challenges ahead, some of which you can control, others requiring preparation.

Threat One: Premature death of a spouse and loss of Social Security or pension income. The loss of one Social Security check can have a significant impact on the household’s income. This...

“The goal: to see if researchers can monitor and detect health changes in older adults and enable them to live longer in their own homes. For example, early signs of cognitive decline may be detected through changes in computer use or driving.”

A research assistant tested and placed sensors in the studio apartment of a 75-year-old Portland, OR resident one June morning. The man was basically allowing his house to be reconfigured, reported The Wall Street Journal in the article “A Tech Test to Keep Seniors in Their Homes Longer.” {: target="_blank"} The man was taking part in a large national study called CART–Collaborative Aging (I...

“Searching for a lawyer who can help you put together a good estate plan, may seem like a daunting task. However, with a little help, you should be able to find several qualified lawyers to choose from.”

Finding an estate planning attorney who can help you create an estate plan that works for your family, is an important first step in creating an estate plan. You’ll want someone you are comfortable with, who is respected by other professionals and will be able to help your loved ones during emotional times. An article from The Balance, “Tips for Finding an Estate Planning Attorney,”{: target="_blank"} offers some useful pointers...

“It's difficult to determine exactly how much to save for retirement. Some people pick a round number, such as saving 10% or 15% of their salary, while others use an external cue, such as the amount of money that will be matched by an employer.”

Are you saving enough for retirement, asks US News & World Report in the article “Are Your Retirement Savings Ahead of the Curve?”{: target="_blank"} Maybe the better question to ask is more specific: How much income do you think you’ll need to replace your salary to pay for your chosen retirement lifestyle? Remember that even when you are not working, you’ll still need to cover healthcare ...

“People are storing important documents, such as wills and medical directives, online. While convenient, there are a few things to keep in mind before you open another online account, experts say.”

There are some clear benefits to storing your will and documents online. You and your spouse (or other authorized people) can access them anytime, from anywhere. We are used to putting our lives online. However, there are also some downsides to consider before doing so, according to a helpful article from CNBC titled “Here’s what you need to know before storing your will online.”{: target="_blank"}

It’s good to have all your important ...

While you’re refining your estate plan to live through your senior years, don’t forget about final arrangements.

For most folks, postponing thinking about their funeral is the status quo, until someone close to them dies or until they have a health scare. Worse, according to The North Platte Telegraph’s article, “Sunday Focus: Don’t wait to make a plan until it’s too late,” {: target="_blank"}they don’t address their demise at all, putting friends and family members in the position to have to guess what they would have wanted.

If you pre-plan your funeral, your family and loved ones are spared the unpleasant guessing game. ...

“Many seniors may be more focused on their bucket lists, than worrying about having their financial affairs in order.”

Seniors should be having some heart-to-heart discussions with their spouses and loved ones about their wishes concerning their assets and their final days, according to Intermountain Catholic in “Retirees Have Several Financial Issues to Consider.”{: target="_blank"} After a loved one dies, family members are often left dealing with the expenses of their medical care and funeral. To be left to deal with these issues while grieving, adds another layer of heartbreak. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Many people put ...

“In the coming decades, baby boomers in the U.S. are expected to transfer an estimated $30 trillion in assets to subsequent generations. For many families in Minnesota, that will include the family cabin.”

One of the key markers of summer in many areas is crowded roads, as folks head out of the city to their summer retreats, like the Outer Banks of the Carolinas or the Berkshire Mountains. They know it’s summer in Minnesota, when the roads are filled with families headed to lake cabins. The tradition may not last another generation, according to MinnPost’s in “The uncertain future of cabins in Minnesota.”

Millennials in their...

“The process of estate planning is only more painful, if one spouse has already passed. In this situation, a surviving elderly parent may enlist the assistance of their adult children to manage and divvy up finances.”

Having adult children actively involved with their mother or father, when the other spouse has passed is a blessing. However, sometimes too much of their influence can create unwanted and burdensome legal problems, especially if a parent is having diminished mental capacity. In an article from Caring.com, “How to Stay Respectful (and Legal) In Parents’ Estate Planning,”{: target="_blank"} adult children are advised...

“Since last year, the NAHB has seen a 30 percent increase in the number of its members seeking special training to help older clients who want to stay in their homes for as long as possible. Remodeling a house, is just one way to make that happen.”

The ultimate goal of aging in place is avoiding a move to an assisted living facility or a nursing home. For some people, it may mean staying in their current home or perhaps moving from a home with more than one level to a ranch with one level or an apartment building with an elevator. According to US News & World Report in the article “Tips to Help You Age in Place,” {: target=...

Many people assume that Revocable Living Trusts are just for wealthy people. However, the benefits that they can offer to someone with even minimal wealth are significant.

One of the more common questions for estate planning attorneys is asked and addressed in an article from thebalance.com, “Will or Revocable Living Trust—Which Do You Need?”{: target="_blank"} It’s a good question because many people don’t understand how important having a will is, even if you don’t have a large amount of property. The following are some factors to consider, when speaking with your estate planning attorney about wills and different types of trusts....

“The succession-planning process is complex and lengthy. To keep your eye on the ball and meet your goals, your family must meet regularly to foster good communication and trust.”

The future for a farm family depends on family meetings that involve all stakeholders. The likelihood of success is bolstered by meeting in a neutral location, holding short meetings on a regular basis and setting clear goals, according to AgWeb.com’s article “Family Meeting Fundamentals.”{: target="_blank"}

Families who want to hold one meeting a year that covers every single aspect of the succession plan, end up with a room full of confused and someti...

“Many times, people spend a great deal of time, energy and money creating an estate plan. However, the plan does not work, because their assets are not funded properly.”

Funding assets is a critical step in the estate planning process that is very frequently forgotten, as reported in The Farmer’s article “Funding assets to your estate plan.”{: target="_blank"}

Funding is the process of titling assets, so that the estate plan and the assets are aligned. Each estate plan is different. However, the funding process includes tasks such as changing ownership on accounts, establishing beneficiary designations and transfer on death desi...

“As baby boomers age, many are planning to downsize into smaller homes. However, preparing to live in a smaller space brings up a challenge: how do you get rid of all the stuff you’ve accumulated through the years.”

Maybe you always thought one of your daughters would want the silverware that you were so proud to inherit from your own mother. However, today’s millennials are not very interested in their parent’s stuff, even when it has market value. According to The Wall Street Journal’s recent article “Baby Boomers Are Downsizing and There’s A Problem: What To Do With All Their Stuff,”{: target="_blank"} it may be time ...

A New Jersey teacher left a surprisingly large gift for students in her Will with the intent of helping to pay for college.

Genevieve Via Cava taught for years as a special education teacher in Bergen County, New Jersey. She was not a particularly well-known person outside of those she taught. However, she was apparently a very frugal person and was able to amass a small fortune by saving as much money as she could and foregoing treats for herself. A longtime friend said that Via Cava even refused to get needed hearing aids because of the expense.

Via Cava passed away at the age of 89. Her frugality will pay off for future generations of...

There are many reasons that people get estate plans. However, those reasons fall into a few general categories.

People who do not have estate plans, often wonder why they should get one. People want to know what they and their family can get out of an estate plan. In large part, this depends on individual circumstances.

What assets a person has, how valuable those assets are and who they should go to after the person passes away, all make a big difference in answering why a person needs an estate plan. There is not a general answer that is truly going to be applicable to everyone.

However, there are three basic categories of reasons for...

To get the most out of Social Security benefits, it is very important that older Americans understand how the system works, before they start to get benefits. An alarming number do not.

On the surface, Social Security is a fairly simple concept to grasp. People pay into it, while they are working. When they retire, they then get paid benefits that are based on their income, when they were working. This seems simple enough. However, what the federal government does is often not that simple.

Social Security is actually a very complex system with all sorts of different rules people can use to get the most out of it. People need to...

When creating an estate plan, it is important you keep in mind the generation-skipping transfer tax.

In part, the federal estate tax is intended to make it, so wealth does not accumulate in one family indefinitely. It may be questionable how well the idea works. However, the idea is that as property passes down from succeeding generations in a family, the government will take a cut at each generation. People have often found ways around this.

One way around it, is by arranging for the inheritance to skip generations within a family. Instead of leaving property to their children, wealthy people would leave it to their grandchildren and...

Before you decide to use the forms of an online service for your legal documents, you should read the disclaimer on the website.

Some websites make it very easy to get legal documents prepared. All you do is pay a small fee, download some forms, read the directions and fill in the blanks on the form.

You can get all sorts of legal documents this way. This includes everything from starting a business to getting a will to getting divorce documents. Doing things this way, seems cheaper than going to an attorney to get the documents prepared. As a result, many people are serving as their own “lawyers” these days.

This loss of business doe...

People who inherit a lot of wealth and are not ready to deal with it, can run into a lot of problems.

Everyone is aware that it is not a good idea to let minor children inherit a lot of wealth and leave them to manage it on their own. The money would likely be wasted, and the children might then lack any motivation to go to school and get a job.

This is so obvious to people, that the law does not even allow it. If minors are left a large inheritance, the court will appoint someone to manage it on their behalf. However, many people assume that once a person matures, they are ready to handle large inheritances on their own.

Adults,...

The death of Matthew Mellon shows how a lack of planning can cause problems for an estate that contains a lot of cryptocurrency.

At the age of 21, Matthew Mellon, a member of the famous family of bankers, inherited $25 million through a trust that was created for him. Illustrating the dangers of giving that much money to someone so young, Mellon was not cautious with the money and developed a costly habit.

He recently passed away on the way to rehab, at the age of 54. If that was the entire story Mellon would be a good cautionary tale about why it is important to carefully structure large inheritances. However, there is more to the story...

It is a good idea to get organized, if you want to make things easier for your family after you pass away. Doing so is also likely to help you now.

Have you have ever needed to find a particular document and do not remember exactly where you put it? If the answer is yes, then you know how frustrating it can be to locate one piece out of a sea of documents.

For example, if you need your birth certificate and the last time you needed it you were in a rush and did not put it away in the right place, then finding it can be difficult and frustrating. People who are not fastidious about putting everything away in its proper place, end up doing...